Forums Forums Wirral History : Chasing the Past Wirral History Cammell Laird & Costa Crociere

The biggest problem with this contract was that it was signed according to Italian law & not English law. There were no stage payments as the work proceeded & Lairds had borrowed £40m from a bank to finance this.
The lack of progress & workmanship issues were just a bluff, the real issue being that Costa had just been taken over by Carnival, who had decided that due to a downturn in the cruise business they didn't need the ship to be lengthened.
Although the work was slightly behind, this would not have affected the section's insertion into the ship.
Had this contract been under English law Costa would have lost the case.

Bob.

I remember being sent to photograph the arrival of the Costa Classico into the Mersey & into Lairds for the local papers. I was purched atop of the Birkenhead Priory with a great vantage point for hours until I got the message that it wasn't coming!

They just commissioned the Costa Europa (and her sister) instead!!

That what I thought regards to high workmanship because as you say they have been building ships for decades.
Also the people who used to work at Laird still demanded a high standard on their vehicles when I used to repair them so I very much doubt it was shoddy workmanship and believe they were sold out.

PB

Perhaps they should have insisted is was set-up in British law but Lairds were desperate for work at that time and not forgetting thatcher off course who also stuck the knife in.

It was very sad time indeed.

PB

Brilliant info fellahs, very informative and I found all the input spot on, good old wiki. For info, I served on a Lairds built sub, the Aeneas, in the 60's, it was built in 1947 and it was a brilliant boat. It was one of the last A boats scrapped and at one time was refitted to do trials with sub launched missiles. Cammell Lairds workmanship was, and probably still is, second to none. The Eyeties pulled a fast one: or should that be the Yanks?